Intellectual development in adulthood: some practical lesson for facilitators of Adult Education Programmes

Abstract

One of the controversies in the field of adult developmental psychology which has still not produced any final answer relates to the issue of whether our intellectual capacities decline with increasing age. It has been suggested that there is a decline in intellectual functioning with advantage age (Thornlike, Jones and Conrad, Wecluster, 1972). It has also been claimed that there is little, if any, decline in cognitive abilities with increasing age. (Schutie and Willis, 1996, Oraeas, Matarazzo, 1992). This paper critically examines the results of some of these studies, bringing out for discussion some methodological flaws inherent in each of the two approaches. The position of this paper is that although efforts so far made to provide conclusive evidence on this subject matter have not been successful, research into the adult’s cognitive abilities has thrown up a number of useful information which could be applied to enhance teaching and learning. Some of these findings have been brought out and for discussion and their implications for adult teaching and learning shown.